Greenhouse gas emissions from passive composting of manure and digestate with crop residues and biochar on small-scale livestock farms in Vietnam

This study investigated the effects of different mixing ratios of crop residues and biochar with liquid digestate from anaerobically treated pig manure on CH₄, CO₂, and N₂O emissions over 84 days in a system of passive aeration composting, resembling typical Vietnamese solid manure storage conditions. Two treatments with solid manure were included for comparison. The results showed that C losses through CH4 and CO₂emissions accounted for 0.06-0.28% and 1.9-26.7%, respectively, of initial total C. CH4 losses accounted for just 0.4-4.0% of total C losses. Total N losses accounted for 27.1-40% of initial total N in which N₂O emissions corresponded to 0.01-0.57% of initial total N, and hence accounted for only 0.1-1.8% of total N losses. It is assumed that the remainder was either the result of denitrification losses to N₂or ammonia volatilization. The composting of biochar (B) or crop residue with digestate (D) showed significantly lower CH4 and N₂O emissions compared with composting manure (M) (p < .05). The composting of digestate with biochar showed significantly lower CO₂and CH₄emissions and significantly higher N₂O emissions compared to the composting of digestate with rice straw (RS) (p < .05). The combined composting of digestate with biochar and rice straw (D + B + RS5:0.3:1) showed significantly reduced N₂O emissions compared with composting digestate with biochar with alone (p < .05). Composting sugar cane bagasse (SC) with digestate (D + SC) significantly reduced CH₄and N₂O emissions compared with the composting of rice straw with digestate (D + RS3.5:1 and D + RS5:1) (p < .05).